A glimpse of Indonesia’s architectural marvels

In cooperation with Germany-based DOM publishers, noted architecture critic and writer Imelda Akmal takes readers on an ultimate journey through Indonesia’s 130 must-visit buildings in her latest book, Architectural Guide Indonesia.
The book is part of DOM’s Architectural Guide series, which has covered architectural masterpieces in 10 countries.
In Architectural Guide Indonesia, Imelda compiles commercial buildings, offices, museums, galleries and hotels built within the country’s independence era.
“At first, I wanted to cover only buildings constructed in the last five years in order to show Indonesia’s contemporary architecture,” said Imelda, who completed her postgraduate studies in architectural theory and criticism at the AA School of Architecture, London.
“My team only covered 60 buildings. Then I expanded the parameters to buildings dating from 1945. This enables us to talk about [former president] Sukarno, our independence history, architectural heritage and also buildings designed by international architects.”
Most of the featured buildings are public places, while the remaining are private properties that are available for public visits. While at a glance Architectural Guide Indonesia appears to be a reference for architects, architecture enthusiasts and tourists, the book can be an intriguing read for anyone.
While many Indonesians have visited the Gelora Bung Karno main stadium (designed by legendary architect F Silaban) and Hotel Indonesia (by Abel Sorensen), perhaps only a few have discovered the unique beauty of the Multimedia Nusantara University tower on the outskirts of Jakarta.
Located in Alam Sutera Tangerang, the campus consists of two huge silver oval buildings designed by the Duta Cermat Mandiri architectural firm. The architect implemented a sustainable design by applying perforated aluminium plates as the building skin, which facilitate air flow and sunlight penetration.
A serene design is reflected in Patekoan Tiang Hoa Hwe Koan School in Serpong, Tangerang. The first Chinese school in Jakarta operated from 1905 before being closed by the government at the dawn of the New Order Era.
In 2008, the school was re-established in Summarecon Serpong, using a design from Adi Purnomo. It is a white building with a simplistic design. To the roof of the entrance area, Adi applied skylight openings at random. He also created a garden on the building’s concreted deck roof to reduce the temperature of the rooms below.
Indonesia’s contemporary architecture is notably seen in commercial buildings and restaurants. Among them is Potato Head beach club restaurant in Seminyak Bali by Andramatin. The beach club attracts attention from afar with its circular wall structure made of 6,000 mismatched teak window shutters.
At the Church of St John the Evangelist, better known Gedung Yohanes, in Kebayoran, Jakarta, notable architect Han Awal applied red bricks to the church’s saw-tooth facade.
The last chapter of the book embraces vernacular architecture in East Nusa Tenggara and Sumatra.
“We featured vernacular houses that are built under the Rumah Asuh Foundation programme, where professional architects guide communities to construct the houses,” Imelda said.
One of them is the reconstruction project of the houses of Wainyapu people in Southeast Sumba, East Nusa Tenggara. The Rumah Asuh Foundation assisted the community to build wooden houses with thatched roofs after they lost their old homes in a series of natural disasters.